welcome to nhk world "newsline." islamist militants in mali may be reviewing battle plans in face of greater resistance on the ground. french soldiers have pushed them out of two key cities in the north. the president of france says coalition forces are winning the fight. francois hollande says french troops will retake key towns in the north and hand over operations to africa. he says it would be up to the africans to restore the territorial integrity of mali. coalition forces recaptured the

rebel stronghold of gau and sealed off the city of timbuktu. french cities won control of the major airports and roads in the area. analyst warn militants could still mount guerrilla-style attacks from hideouts in the deserts and mountains. in ethiopia, african union leaders have met to discuss the situation in mali. they're vowing to do more to help with the fight against islamist militants. representatives of the union's 54 members gathered in the ethiopian capital, pledging $50 million to support troops from france and from across africa fighting islamist militants. they are linked to al qaeda and control a large part of the country. >> made a commitment to pool our efforts together to assist this

country. >> representatives from japan, the u.s. and europe will discuss the situation with african leaders later in the day. the japanese are expected to contribute $100 million in aid for refugees. a senior united nations official says the needs of millions of syrians are growing as their country's civil war rages on. john ging says the u.n. will ask governments at upcoming donor conference to raise $1.5 billion in aid. in addition to the 519 million for the four million people we decided as in need in syria, we also have a plan to respond to the refugees which now number over 650,000 in the neighboring countries. and that plan is costing $1 billion. >> ging spoke in new york after

a mission to syria. he said the u.n. will make the request for aid after the donor conference in kuwait. he says the civil war has damaged infrastructure such as water, electricity and roads. he noticed people are in desperate need for food and medical supplies. he said relief goods are not reaching people who have fled to northern syria. ging demanded syrian leaders allow u.n. officials to enter the country from turkey. myanmar's leader is on a visit to south korea. they met with the first woman to be elected president of south korea, park. the two female politicians encourage to do what they can for their respective countries. our seoul bureau chief reports. >> reporter: last year, aung san suu kyi traveled after a long period of house arrest. now since being elected to parliament she's asking her korean colleagues to support

myanmar's democratization and the country is still in its infancy. >> we shall be in a better position to help other peoples every where. when we talk about peace and prosperity in our country we're not talking about just for our people, built for human beings the world over. >> reporter: they have similar background. both grew up as the daughters of political leaders in their respective countries and both fathers were assassinated. the president-elect of korea says shelves a strong connection and praises her achievements. >> translator: i admire your long term dedication to the cause of democracy in your country and the sacrifices you have made.

i know what life is like when you decide to give up your own happiness and to treat your people as your own family. >> reporter: myanmar has been called the last frontier of asia with some countries, japan, china are among those vying to make economic inroads into the country. korean air started direct flights to myanmar last year. last may he became the first president in myanmar in 29 years. he met with his counter part during his trip. he pledges increase korean investment to myanmar because of the country's great potential. before meeting with bak, she discussed issues of economic

development and education. they pledged further cooperation between their countries. both south korea's incumbent president and president-elect will become a democratic icon. their attitude shows that south korea is eager to work on multiple fronts towards a firm relationship with myanmar whether they are dealing with the president or opposition leader. that's it for our bulletin. india is asia's third largest economy but growth is slowing. now the country is taking further steps to stimulate its flagging economy. good evening. they're lowering the interest rate to 7.75%.

they made the decision at a policy meeting on tuesday and already implemented the measure. the bank kept the figure unchanged since april last year with the aim of holding inflation in check. the decrease nine months ago was the first one in three years. due to these efforts, inflation has been hovering about 7% since last october. economic growth on the other hand has slowed. the country's gdp growth remained at the 5% level for the first three quarters of last year. this has prompted businesses to urge the central bank to slash interest rates. the bank announced on tuesday that it will provide an appropriate interest rate environment to support growth as inflation risks lessen. members of the japanese cabinet approved the biggest budget on record for 2013. it totals over $1 trillion.

the draft budget reflects shinzo abe's determination to stimulate japanese government by boosting government expenditures. public works spending will increase for the first time in four years. the government plans to spend over $770 billion to implement its policies. that's up about 3% in yen terms from the current fiscal year. it has earmarked more than $240 billion for servicing government debt or an increase of over 1%. also for the first time in four years, tax revenues are expected to exceed what the government would get by issuing new bonds. the government expects tax revenues to total over $473 billion, or nearly 2% more than in this fiscal year. meanwhile, new bond offerings will fall by 3% to about $470 billion. japan still relies on government bond sells for 46% of its total revenue. the outstanding balance of government debt is expected to total about $8.2 trillion at the end of fiscal 2013. to repay it, the nation requires 17 years worth of tax revenues. the total debt also translates into almost $65,000 per person. the government plans to submit the draft budget to the diet for

approval by the end of next month. >> japanese workers may soon have a few more yen in their pockets if union leaders get their way. union and business leaders are discussing a proposed wage hike. to repay it, the nation requires 17 years worth of tax revenues. the total debt also translates into almost $65,000 per person. the government plans to submit the draft budget to the diet for approval by the end of next month. oda can put up buildings and improve in technology. they gain better access to the continent's emerging markets and natural resources. but japan's sluggish economy forced its leaders to cut oda. they slashed it to less than half of what it was at its peak in the 1990s.

however, they're determined to maintain a presence. so they're coming up with a new strategy. nhk world's reporter explains. >> reporter: for years a japanese government agency called gentleman japan international cooperation agency has provided aid to the country. last year in this village, japan installed a system to purify water. the oda program helped. the system uses gravel to filter water. even though this is a giant project, a private company does the work free of charge. >> translator: tasty. >> translator: now we don't get sick after drinking water.

>> reporter: at the moment, they're working on new projects with private companies. until recently, the agency planned the projects. then it commissioned private companies to carry them out. but the japanese government paid the bill. under the new system, it's the company that do all the planning. jica pays up to $560,000 in research fees. the company pays the other costs. the government officials cut spending and they want to make sure that the quality remains the same. what prompted this new strategy was competition from china. in recent years, it agreed to give aid to african countries. this big stadium is going up in zambia. china is financing it.

it will cost around $94 million. last summer chinese authorities announced that over the next three years, they will spend $20 billion on all the projects. that's double what they spent over the past three years. >> translator: we can't leave everything up to the government. we need to work with the private and nonprofit sectors to expand this program as much as possible. >> reporter: japan's strategy benefits japanese companies. this man works for a motorcycle maker that installs the water purification system. they're working to cut the african market because jica provided research costs and they're able to keep the company's costs down. furthermore, he can build a collection with a local which is a big benefit.

his company has viewed this service to promote they're strategy. they hope this will result in more bike sales. >> translator: we want to use japanese government programs infe effectively. i think it's best for everyone. it's a win-win situation, really. >> translator: japan's smaller companies have fine technologies that's very useful here. i think the project has great significance. >> over the past three years, japan's new oda strategy has resulted in completion of 50 projects in african countries and other developing nations. ten more projects are in the works for this year. nhk world, senegal. researchers in northeastern japan are giving health checks to hundreds of young people from

a town near fukushima daiichi. they're trying to estimate how much radiation the residents were exposed to in the early days after the 2011 accident at the nuclear plant. they are happening inside this building. the people getting examined don't want their identities to be revealed. they are from naime. many residents went to areas northwest of the town after the accident, without knowing radiation levels there were high. they convinced municipal officials to offer tests for people 18 years or younger at the time. around 850 children, or about a quarter of those eligible, want to be examined. researchers will collect blood to look for changes in chromosomes. >> translator: we will do our best to notify the examinees of the results as soon as possible to relieve their concerns. >> the operators of japan's

power plants are bracing for a new set of rules. nuclear regulation officials have drafted new safety standards for protecting against an earthquake and tsunami. the guidelines finalized and passed into law by july. they will define active faults as formations that moved in the past 120,000 to 130,000 years. but that could be extended to 400,000 years ago if faults are hard to identify. any plants deemed to be sitting on active faults could be shut down. the guidelines will force plant operators to prepare for the highest possible tsunamis for all reactors. the operators will have to implement safety measures like seawalls, to protect the plants from tsunamis and minimize flooding.

and new safety guidelines are expected to be passed into law by july. north korean leader is rallying supporters ahead of what many analysts believe will be the country's third underground test. the gathering on monday involved secretaries of the ruling party's local divisions or cells. it was first of its kind in 5 1/2 years. kim said that meeting marks a turning point in the party's efforts to strengthen the military. >> translator: we play an important role in building a prosperous nation and unification of the koreans. >> kim did not refer directly to a nuclear test. his close aide told the meeting that north korea should be combat ready in light of growing antagonism from the united states. north korean leaders have denounced a u.n. security resolution, calling for sanctions in response to the rocket launch last month.

analysts say they are shoring up the power ahead of a possible nuclear test. north korean scientists carried out this type of test in 2006 and 2009. chinese protesters in guangzhou have been rallying against censorship of a newspaper. over in taiwan, people are also protesting about the media, worried about pro china ownership and control here is a report from taiwan. >> reporter: this is one of taiwan's four major newspapers. until recently, it had more leaders but one of its competitors owned by hong kong interests, the daily was known for articles that criticized the chinese government. but in november, that changed.

in a partnership expected to receive approval of the authorities, a consortium of companies owns the paper, and major part is pro china. [ speaking foreign language ] >> reporter: if there had been any doubt, the company showed its colors in september. a fleet of taiwanese boats entered waters around senkaku islands in protest over japan's control over the islands. the boats displayed the company banner and mascot. the chairman of the company helped finance the expedition by donating $140,000 to it. the paper joins a list of other taiwanese media outlets owned by the group. it owns a major cable tv news station on the island and the china times newspaper.

when taiwan authorities approved the purchase of the paper, the group will officially own two of taiwan's four major newspapers, china times used to be known for unbiased and liberal coverage, but under its new ownership, the paper tends to support china. as an example, in the senkaku dispute, it calls on taiwan to cooperate with china in countering japan. as for coverage of the protests in china over newspaper censorship, it's not extensive. [ speaking foreign language ] >> reporter: earlier this month, taiwanese demonstrated in central taipei. they were protesting against

concentration of media ownership by chinese interests. it was organized by the largest opposition blog, the democratic progressive party. its members want taiwan to have a separate identity from china. some protesters carried banners, stating want want group must go. about 90,000 people protested. many expressed concern about taiwan media. >> translator: there should be no media monopoly, it restricts diversity of opinion. >> we have to be wary of china's control of our economy and speech. i find that reprehensible. >> reporter: taiwan is improving economic ties with mainland china. this is evident in the tourism business. last year, over 2 million

chinese tourists visited taiwan, that far surpasses the number of visitors from japan. until four years ago it was japan that sent more tourists. many in taiwan are concerned about pro chinese interests, and now the taiwanese worry the media may not be far behind. nhk world, taipei. many chinese are heading home for the lunar new year. but the serious air pollution is hampering smooth travel. beijing weather officials on tuesday raised the air pollution alert to its highest level. the density of airborne particles, 20 times higher than tokyo's annual average. the officials said fumes from coal-burning heaters are adding to car and factory emissions. lack of wind and high humidity

is making conditions worse. >> my eyes ache. breathing this air is not good for my health. >> translator: i'm going back to my hometown for the holidays. i'm looking forward to all the clean air. >> heavy smog also covered the eastern and inland provinces of shandong, jiangsu, and anhoi, residents were advised to stay indoors and avoid driving. expect people to make a record 3 million trips for the holiday that begins february 9th. but the smog has canceled long-distance bus services and closed highways. it also delayed flights at local airports. it's been cold here in tokyo. temperatures are warming up this week. robert speta is here with more. robert? >> yes, indeed. we're seeing high pressure push

in from the west. it will be ushering in much calmer weather and warmer temperatures. it pulls off toward the east. tapering off much to the east. snow filled flurries, but also pulling in the warm air from the south. also heavy moisture pulling in across portions of indochina and rainshowers picking up in the afternoon and evening hours. but the same thing, that high pressure creating stagnant air in northeastern china. why we're seeing the pollution or the high pollution density in air around beijing and smog. if you have respiratory issues, stay inside if you can. high pressure remains in place and it looks like for the remainder of the workweek, it will remain in place. not much of the weather systems kicking up through the air. temperatures expecting to warm up. high of 16. tokyo, 12 for the high on wednesday. the problem with this, higher elevations as temperatures continue to wrap up. we saw heavy snowfall for the weekend. and there is a risk of avalanche. and to the americas on the other hand, temperatures cooling right

off. a storm system pushing through. a mixed bag of weather. across the south. dry weather here, bringing the risk of some fire danger. especially there in western texas, just toward north, a low pressure area, also firing up some severe thunderstorms into oklahoma, already seeing the tornado watch as well. all continue to shift here to the east throughout your day on wednesday. warm air flowing in from the south. colliding with the cold air from the north, and the same thing, cold air is going to be kicking up some snow. about 15 to 20 centimeters in a few areas could fall. especially across the northern plains and extending to kansas to oklahoma, as the frontal area continues to push off toward the east. this front itself is including tornadoes as well. cold weather filtering. winnipeg, minus nine for your high on tuesday. things getting rather chillier. thursday, minus 19. into new york and washington, you are going to see a slight

warmup. and weather surging in. once it passes by, temperatures back right off to the end of the week. it looks like a warmup, but won't last very long. here into europe, the british isles, a strong storm system. heavy rain warnings into effect across portions of the uk. toward scotland and the southern portions of the uk here. also seeing gusty winds, 90 kilometer-per-hour winds. sustained winds 40 kilometers expected with the system as it

pushed through. and on wednesday going to thursday, cold air will filter in, much like what we are seeing in the u.s., as it does, temperatures will start to drop off. london, paris, both at 10 and 11. dropping down to the freezing mark by the end of the week. sunny skies across much of the mediterranean. rome, 16. you are seeing not even the freezing mark in moscow. minus 3 for the high in the mid part of the week. here is a look at the extended forecast.

we'll be back in 30 minutes with more news. i'm gene otani in tokyo.

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